Erce Kardeşler, the second goalkeeper Trabzonspor recruited from Altınordu in 2019, told his story of starting football, his career plans, his past experiences on the way to the championship and his dream of becoming a championship in an interview published on the club’s social media channel.
“I’M SHAME OF COMING INTO PEOPLE WHEN WE CAN’T WIN”
Explaining his transfer to Trabzonspor and the city’s love for the burgundy blue team, goalkeeper Erce Kardeşler said, “I started in Bursaspor and spent 6 years in Altınordu. When I came here, people often said, ‘Black Sea people are angry and aggressive’, but when I came, I was very well received. Trabzon city. It’s fine for me. It’s nice that people are so warm towards us. If I go and say to someone one night, ‘I’ve come for dinner’, they will take me and feed me in the best way possible. These are very special things, especially in this period. This also comes in handy. They want a lot from us, too. We fight well and win. Trabzonspor is one of the 4 big clubs. Altınordu is a very modest team that does not have an eye for heights. This is where the so-called big team comes from. We just go on the field and everything else is laid out in front of you. There is pressure from being in the big team and the city. I feel ashamed to go out in public when we don’t win. The way people look at you is very special and beautiful. . It’s great to be here, but it has its challenges. “The end of these difficulties always leads to beauty,” he said.
“Sometimes I DON’T EVEN GO HOME”
Stating that he has been playing football since his childhood and doing what he loves, goalkeeper Erce said, “I do what I love, there is such a nice and cheerful atmosphere here. We have a very good friendship. I really enjoy spending time here. My wife doesn’t hear it, but sometimes I can’t go home from here. Because “We are having a great time, doing activities. It is very enjoyable for me,” he said.
“I PASSED TO THE CASTLE, I DIDN’T GO AGAIN”
Explaining that he went to camps with his father as a child and that his father did not direct him to become a goalkeeper, Erce Kardeşler said, “My father never put pressure on me to be a goalkeeper or a football player. I used to follow him for a while. I remember the time in Bilecik very clearly. He was in the 3rd league at that time. I liked staying and spending time with my teammates so much that I said, ‘I want to play football too.’ I said, ‘It doesn’t matter to me, I can play wherever you put it.’ The Hodja also played me at right-back. The first 2 days passed like this. The next week, they put a friend in the goal while playing. He was constantly conceding goals. I am also very ambitious, I can never bear to lose. I said, ‘Get out.’
“I think it’s the visible part of the iceberg for UĞURCAN”
Mentioning the team’s main goalkeeper and teammate Uğurcan Çakır with words of praise, Erce said:
“I think Uğurcan is the most talented among the goalkeepers I have worked with so far. He has incredible talents, he is a good boy. It has been 3 years, he has added a lot to me since I first came. Thanks to him, I have improved myself more. He will represent with ease. He is a value not only for Trabzonspor, but also for our country. I think Uğurcan can play 2-3 times more comfortably than he currently plays. I see him with the naked eye every day. I think this is the tip of the iceberg for Uğurcan. We also see the invisible part of the iceberg. Maybe it’s surprising for people that he’s this good, but for me, I’m not surprised in any way. He represents us in the best way in his leagues.”
“GOALTENDER WAS EASIER BEFORE”
Explaining that the changing rules in football also affected goalkeeping, Erce said, “Goalkeeping was easier in the past. Because a virtue we call playmaking from behind was not expected. It seemed enough just to save the balls coming from the goalkeeper. In this way, more virtues got on, but it became better. There was no need at all. You were just standing there, not even a back pass was thrown. You couldn’t enter the game. Now this way, the ball may not come through in the match, but because you use your feet more, you can always stay warm in the match. I think this is a very necessary thing. Especially in your own penalty area. It became more important after your players were able to enter. If we do not count the goalkeeper, there are 10 people on the opposite side, you are 11 people. When you have the ball, you are one more person. Very big clubs started to do this at first, but then all the clubs started to establish it. I learned this in Altınordu. This is how good goalkeepers in the world are. Goalkeepers also started to evolve when they saw that they started using e. It’s better for us to touch the ball more,” he said.
“OUR TEACHER EXPANDED OUR COMFORT AREA”
Stating that the comfort area provided by Abdullah Avcı, the coach of the burgundy blue team, to the football players positively affects the performance, Erce said, “Abdullah is the first coach to make his football mind based on technique and tactics. From the outside, his temperament seems very harsh. He is actually tough towards us, but on the inside. We know very well that he is very soft and kindhearted. He provides us with a very comfortable space here. He does not choke us too much, does not keep us in the facility. Our teacher left us a little too free. This is very good for us. Because in this team, we are irresponsible, undisciplined, There are no football players who do crappy things. All teams go to camp before the match, we sleep at home. There is nothing as nice as this. Today I am going home again. If I come now, I will be closed at the facility until 6 pm tomorrow, but I am going home to see my wife. My mind is relieved. and this makes me play the game more fit. This also affects our performance. Our coach has expanded our comfort zone a lot. It made us feel more comfortable.”
“WE WATCHED THE BUSINESS TOGETHER WHILE TAKING THE ROAD”
Stating that the 2020-21 season, in which Trabzonspor won the Turkish Cup and finished the Super League in the 4th place, is an experience for the team for the championship, which is likely to be experienced this year, goalkeeper Erce said:
“We actually won the Turkish Cup that year, but frankly, it was a bittersweet joy for all of us as a result of the lost league. When we look back, it was a good experience for us. We all experienced what it was like to be in the championship race and what stress management required. We kept the job tight from the beginning. It goes the way you start it. We started really well. We will go out to win every match with the same seriousness until we get the trophy. This is a habit. This habit and self-confidence that will carry over to the next year. We are self-confident now, we have a lot of trust in each other. When we fall behind on the field, none of us has the question ‘will we be defeated’, we say ‘we will turn it down’. This self-confidence is very important. We have achieved this so well that we feel very comfortable on the field.”
“STAT CANNOT BE ENOUGH FOR US”
Saying that the championship, which is approaching step by step, did not fit into his dreams, Erce explained his feelings as follows:
“If we win an away game, it is most likely that our fans going to the airport will soften the plane with their hands as it lands. This much fits my imagination. I think that if we win here, we will celebrate until the morning at the stadium. We dream a lot about that. We play the games as soon as possible, win and win our trophy. It will be a very different situation. All this trouble, stress, the pandemic in the world, and the country’s economic deterioration will be a hope for the people living here. It will create a spark in Anatolia again. It will be a very nice and special atmosphere. Here. I think it will be celebrated for 1 week and 10 days. All Trabzonspor people flock to the city, the city will overflow. I do not think that the championship celebrations will be in the stadium, because the stadium will not be enough for us. I do not know where there is a huge empty land in Trabzon, but this may be the most beautiful or all together to the sea. We will open up. It will be most comfortable.”
“EVERY PLAYER HAS A DREAM OF A TEACHER”
Stating that he wanted to be a coach in the future, Erce said, “We were talking about this with Abdullah teacher. I was even saying, ‘When I leave, you will take me to the team’. The teacher said, ‘Maybe we will leave this profession until you leave my son’. Of course, I have such a dream. I believe that I have a good view of football, that I read football well. I have such a dream, but we do not know where life will take us. Life is what happens to you while you are making plans. I have such a dream, but of course, my primary dream is to reach higher levels in football, goalkeeping. I think every player’s dream of being a coach After all, it is important to win something as a football player, but I think it is much more important as a coach. Right now, I am only responsible for what Erce and Erce have done, but our teacher Abdullah or any coach is responsible for the whole team. I think his responsibility and pleasure to win is much higher.” used.